


Got a Taste for the Cherry

by nu-exo (Nekohime)



Category: NU'EST, Wanna One (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Vampire, Blood Drinking, Daniel is a human in L-O-V-E, M/M, Minhyun is a vampire, Seongwu and Minki are awful bestfriends, but not too steamy, things get steamy, truly the worst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-08
Updated: 2019-05-08
Packaged: 2020-02-28 05:16:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 15,415
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18749761
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nekohime/pseuds/nu-exo
Summary: Minhyun prided himself on his self-control.  As far as vampires went, his was top notch.  Which is why it stressed him out that all he could think of was how badly he wanted to sink his teeth into Kang Daniel's neck.  Why did Daniel even have to show that much skin in the first place?  Minhyun just wanted his quiet college life back.





	Got a Taste for the Cherry

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much to the prompter for sending this in! It kind of got away from me but I hope you enjoy how it turned out in the end. I feel like I kind of toed the line towards the end, but I think I managed to keep things PG-13 ^_^' 
> 
> To the mods, thank you so so much for being as understanding as you have been over this entire process!! I was so grateful for your understanding when life came at me like a train. You've made the entire fest experience a true pleasure.
> 
> And to B for cheering me on and reading what I wrote as I went! I appreciated it so much!
> 
> Hope you all enjoy!

  
  
  
  


“He’s staring again.”

 

“Hm?” Minhyun hummed, snorting lightly as he read over a truly creative wrong answer on one of the quizzes he was grading for Professor Park.

 

“I said,” Minki started, flicking Minhyun on the head so that there was no way he could ignore him a second time, “He’s staring. Again.”

 

Minhyun sighed, snatching Minki’s hand before he could flick him again.  “Who?” he asked, even though he was pretty sure he knew the answer already.

 

Minki made a strangled noise that both Jonghyun and Dongho ignored, trying to yank his hand back.  He still had it in him to snap a very sarcastic and not at all repentant, “Who do you think?”

 

“Leave Minhyun alone,” Jonghyun chastised, fingers barely pausing over his laptop’s keyboard.

 

“Hah.”

 

“And you,” Minhyun yelped as Jonghyun reached out to swat at him, the strength and speed of the motion just inhuman enough to leave the skin on Minhyun’s hand stinging, “Stop playing dumb and act your age.”

 

It was Minki’s turn to laugh, sticking his tongue out when Minhyun glared.

 

“I’m not playing dumb,” Minhyun grumbled, because he sure as hell wasn’t acting his age.  What did a five hundred year old even act like in the first place? Like Jonghyun? Minhyun was pretty sure five hundred year olds didn’t usually cry over Prince of Tennis at 4 am on a weekday.

 

“He’s right,” Dongho said, finally caving and joining in.  Minhyun looked over at him with hopeful smile forming on his face.  He could always count on Dongho to be the sensi- “He’s clearly not playing.”

 

_ Betrayal _ .  Minhyun didn’t realize he’d hissed that outloud until Minki started cackling like an old cartoon villain.  “Fuck you,” he snapped, using a tone that heavily implied,  _ “Go die” _ .

 

Minki laughed louder — they were in a library for god’s sake, not that something so minor would ever deter the human from making fun of Minhyun — and even Jonghyun seemed amused, which, rude.  Jonghyun was probably the only one at the table who wasn’t allowed to laugh right now.

 

“Oh, now he’s really looking over here,” Dongho chuckled, yelping when Minhyun reached out lightning quick to punch him in the arm.  With a controlled amount of strength, of course. It wasn’t civilized to accidentally break your human friends. 

 

It also wasn’t civilized to want to drink from a friend of a friend’s neck.  Or their wrist. Or their juicy femoral artery, high up on the inside of their thigh (that one was a definite no).  Which was why Minhyun was determined to block out the human who really was shamelessly staring now — as if a table with two vampires and a whole Minki wouldn’t notice.

 

Because, Minhyun was better than his urges.  He was better than his hunger. He wouldn’t cave just because Kang Daniel had developed a penchant for wearing as little clothing as possible these days.  No. Daniel was Seongwu’s friend. Still finishing up his undergrad degree. Captain of the swim team. He was, unquestionably, irrevocably- walking over to them.

 

“Oh god,” Minhyun whined, all but slamming his face into the wooden table they were seated at with how quickly he ducked his head.

 

Papers.  He had papers to grade.

 

“Hey, Daniel,” Dongho called when the younger man had gotten closer, because, again, he was a  _ traitor _ .

 

“Hey,” Daniel called back, eyes curved up in a boyish smile, pulse beating a pretty rhythm.

 

He was wearing a leather jacket over a soft looking v-neck with a deep plunge, a thin necklace highlighting the swath of warm skin on full display with how the pendant sat in the dip between his collar bones.  He smelled like peach body scrub, the sharp note of cologne, and something inherently Daniel that was just so  _ sweet _ .  Like honey and cherry gummies.  

 

Minhyun’s grip on his pen tightened.  His teeth  _ ached _ .

 

“What’s up?” Jonghyun asked, patting the seat by him, running a fussing hand over Daniel’s hair when the younger man sat down.

 

It was a habit Jonghyun had had for as long as Minhyun had known him.  To fuss and worry like a mother hen. It was sweet, if not overbearing at times, but no one took it in better stride than Daniel.  Except maybe Seongwu. 

 

As it was, Daniel sat patiently while Jonghyun picked and prodded,  _ giggling _ when Jonghyun pinched at his side and asked if he was eating enough.

 

“Of course I am,” he huffed in mock offense, lips pushing out into a pout that Minhyun definitely didn’t think was cute and-  _ fuck, focus _ .  “I’m a big boy. I know how to take care of myself.”

 

Jonghyun hummed in a way that suggested he didn’t wholly believe him, which was fair considering he’d caught Seongwu, Daniel, and Jaehwan trying to live off of ramen for an entire week one time.  He backed off though, easing out of Daniel’s personal space, his eyes taking on an evaluating edge.

 

“Okay, okay. Then I’ll ask again, what’s up?”

 

“Why does something have to be up for me to come talk to my favorite grad students, hyung?” Daniel asked in a tone that was far too innocent to be genuine.

 

Jonghyun raised an eyebrow, lips twitching at the corner.  To Daniel’s credit, he didn’t even flinch under the deep crimson of Jonghyun’s stare.

 

“Well, for starters,” Jonghyun tilted his head to the side, shifting his gaze so that he was looking at Jaehwan over Daniel’s shoulder, the human jumping when he realized he’d been caught, “you and Jaehwan almost never come to the library. Let alone together. The last time you did, you ended up getting kicked out because you couldn’t stop laughing in the corner over videos of cats getting startled by cucumbers.”

 

Daniel choked down what was definitely a snort at the memory.  

 

“In our defense, they were very funny videos.”

 

“Mhm,” Jonghyun hummed, amused but not impressed.  Hypocritical in Minhyun’s opinion since Dongho still had that video compilation of Jonghyun’s after-exam victory dances, all recorded in places they weren’t supposed to be after dark.  “So…”

 

“So,” Daniel cleared his throat , “A little birdie may or may not have mentioned that you took Professor Wu’s art history class when you were doing your undergrad.”

 

“A little birdie,” Jonghyun said, voice flat.

 

Minhyun, Minki, and Dongho all snorted.  They all knew who the ‘little birdie’ was.  They also knew that it was his fault that Jonghyun almost failed that art history course.  A fatal combination of handsy flirting and casual touching turning out to be bad for the self-control Jonghyun prided himself on, and his grade.

 

“Uh-huh, okay. Did Seongwu also happen mention that I swore off anything art related after that class?”

 

“It was all the new associations he had for the artwork,” Minhyun chimed in, unable to help himself.  “It was hard to focus on Rembrandt when all he could think of was Seongwu’s hand on his- ow! Did you just throw a highlighter at me?”

 

Jonghyun’s glare would’ve terrified a lesser man or vampire.  Unfortunately, Minhyun had been on the receiving end of it too often over the centuries.  The effect had really waned.

 

That didn’t mean Jonghyun didn’t have other ways of getting back at him.

 

“You know, Daniel,” Jonghyun said, eyes taking on a sharp gleam, “Seongwu and I weren’t the only ones in that class.”  

 

Minhyun blanched, alarm bells ringing in his head.  He narrowed his eyes at Jonghyun, jerking his head to the side in a quick, barely noticeable shake.   _ Don’t you dare. _

 

Jonghyun smiled like butter wouldn’t melt in his mouth and turned to face Daniel again.

 

“Minhyun took that class with us and actually paid attention. Pretty sure Professor Wu laminated his final paper on the sexual undertones of Rococo Art and how it reflected societal worries of the time.”

 

Daniel looked over at Minhyun then, dark eyes glittering with something that looked suspiciously like victory, his heartbeat kicking up in his chest.  His scent, which Minhyun was already too attuned to, mixed with something light and sweet. An intricate combination of emotions made physical. It made his head spin.

 

His poor pen creaked from the force of his grip on it.

 

“You took the class too, hyung?”

 

_ Oh, god _ .  “I- Yeah, I did.”  Minhyun cleared his throat, valiantly ignoring his friends’ blatantly amused staring.  “I, uh, might still have my notes.”

 

“Really?” Daniel asks, and he’s leaning forward now.  Like an eager kid — or a large happy puppy — about to get what they want.  “Because that would be amazing, my notes are,” Daniel winced, looking sheepish, “not great? And at 8 am, all that symbolism talk just goes right over my head.”

 

This was horrible.  Minhyun was so weak, his teeth hurt so much, fangs starting to sharpen in a way that he usually had control over but now- 

 

Wait.  

 

“All that symbolism talk...Daniel. You know that all of Professor Wu’s assignments are analysis based, right?”

 

Daniel gave him a sunny smile.  “Mhm.”

 

“Midterms are six weeks away. They count for twenty-five percent of your grade.”

 

“I know.”

 

“Finals are another twenty-five, then the rest is split between papers and weekly analysis.”

 

“And?”

 

Minhyun made a distressed noise in the back of his throat.  “Daniel, not even  _ my _ notes will be able to help with that. Not alone.”

 

Daniel’s face scrunched up into the cutest frown.  He scratched at the back of his neck, Minhyun sucking in a sharp breath when that brought Daniel’s blood closer to the surface of his skin.

 

The distraction was the reason Minhyun didn’t notice Dongho’s calculating expression before it was too late.

 

“Why don’t you tutor him then?”

 

“Huh?”  Minhyun turned to him, mouth slightly open, gums throbbing.

 

Everyone at the table was looking at him.  Even Jaehwan over at his and Daniel’s table was looking over, probably trying to gauge how the conversation was going; trying to see if he’d have someone to mooch off of for their shared class.

 

“That’s actually a great idea,” Jonghyun said, that smile that made everyone think he was an angel shining on his face.  “What do  _ you _ think, Minhyun?”

 

Minhyun was having a hard time thinking anything with Daniel so close, a predicament that had only been getting worse with time, not better.  A small but determined part of his brain was trying to fight through the fog Daniel’s blemish free skin and loudly beating heart had filled his head with.  It was saying that being alone with Daniel, who tested Minhyun’s iron will and self-control, for extended periods of time was a monumentally stupid idea. 

 

Even if Daniel was fine with the vampires in his extended friend group, Minhyun highly doubted he’d be okay with being jumped by one looking for a taste.

 

The other, louder, part of his brain, though, was craving the proximity.  It was saying that it’d be a chance for Minhyun to get to know Daniel better, without Seongwu acting as an intermediary — or an annoyance.  What could possibly go wrong?

 

Lots, technically, but Daniel was looking at him with his dark, hopeful eyes, smiling so sweetly.  Minhyun was immortal and superhuman in many ways, but apparently not in this. Not when it came to Daniel.

 

Damn it.

 

Minhyun smiled.  He hoped it didn’t betray how much he was freaking out inside, the urge to bolt building up.  “Yeah, that sounds fine. When works best for you?”

 

Daniel positively glowed with the intensity of his smile, his heart kicking up in his chest.  Something like butterflies fluttered in Minhyun’s stomach. Daniel leaned across the table then, grabbing one of Minhyun’s too cold hands, uncurling the fist he’d unconsciously formed and scribbling something onto it with a pen he’d pulled from one of his pockets.  Minhyun didn’t know what it was, though, too busy staring at the freshly exposed swathe of skin, courtesy of Daniel’s jacket catching and tugging on the neckline of his long-sleeve.

 

He was tracing the line of muscle leading from Daniel’s neck to his shoulder when the younger man spoke up, reminding Minhyun that a) they were in public, and b) they weren’t alone.

 

“I’m free after lecture on Monday, and anytime before or after swim practice on Wednesdays and Thursdays. This is my number,” he let go of Minhyun’s hand, fingertips leaving behind a burning path of warmth as they trailed away.  “You can text to let me know which of those days is good for you, or, you know,” he ducked his head with a small, deep chuckle that rumbled in his chest and rolled straight down Minhyun’s spine, “if you just want to talk.”

 

“Oh.”  Minhyun licked his lips.   _ Control, control, control. _  “Yeah. Sure. I’ll let you know.”

 

“Great!” Another blinding smile, so earnest Minhyun felt his lips unconsciously twitching up to match.  “I look forward to hearing from you, hyung.”

 

Minhyun nodded, a little stunned, and did Daniel just... _ smirk _ at him?  No. Had to be a trick of the light.  Or Minhyun’s mind.

 

Seemingly satisfied, Daniel turned and walked back to his table.  Minhyun was vaguely aware of Jaehwan perking up at his friend’s return, asking in what he probably thought was a whisper but might as well have been normal volume for Minhyun’s hearing,  _ “So? How’d it go?” _

 

Minhyun forced himself to look away right as Daniel looked over.  That didn’t stop him from catching the human’s answer.

 

“ _ Great. _ ”

 

Jonghyun snorted, eyes focused back on his computer, glancing down at the medical journal he had open.  Obviously, he’d heard everything too. Sometimes Minhyun wished the other vampire were human instead.  Of course, then he wouldn’t be one now either, but still, the sentiment stood.

 

“Not one word,” Minhyun warned, slumping down in his chair.

 

“I didn’t even say anything yet,” Jonghyun huffed.

 

Minhyun shot him an annoyed glare, running a hand through his hair, tugging lightly at the strands.  He felt exhausted. He’d need to feed soon, preferably before his first tutoring session with Daniel.

 

Oh god.  His tutoring session with Daniel.  Daniel, who for some reason, tested every strand of his carefully honed patience.

 

Minhyun whined, covering his face with his hands.  “What have I done.”

 

“Scored yourself a cute undergrad?” Minki teased, his own work entirely forgotten in favor of bothering Minhyun.

 

Minhyun made a noise akin to a dying whale.  “This was a mistake.”

 

“Just keep the fangs in check and you’ll be fine,” Dongho laughed, as if it were that simple.

 

Minhyun wanted to laugh.  It was never that simple.

 

He looked at Daniel’s phone number written in surprisingly neat script on his palm.  Then, he looked at his other hand, and the crushed remains of his pen. Lovely.

 

Five hundred years, and not a day smarter for it.

  
  


✙

  
  


“If you’re that worried about it, why don’t you just tell Daniel something came up?”

 

Minhyun shot Seongwu what would’ve been a withering glare if he wasn’t currently latched to the human’s wrist, fangs buried deep, blood trickling down his chin.

 

“Don’t look at me like that,” Seongwu sniffed, tilting his head just enough to return Minhyun’s expression with one of mock offense.  “I’m literally feeding you.”

 

Minhyun narrowed his eyes and gave Seongwu’s wrist a harsh suck, snorting through his nose when Seongwu let out a noise somewhere between a whine and a moan, his head thunking back against the headboard of his bed.

 

“You’re awful.”

 

Minhyun detached his fangs, carefully lapping up the blood that pooled out until the two bite marks slowly closed.  He sat back on his heels, wiping at his mouth, then, keeping eye contact with Seongwu, wiped his hand on the sheets.

 

“Fuck you.”

 

“No thanks,” Minhyun sniffed.  “I’ve seen your stamina. Doesn’t seem promising”

 

Seongwu made a strangled, gurgling noise.  He kicked at Minhyun’s thigh, immediately regretting it judging by how quickly he recoiled, massaging his ankle and heel all while grumbling.

 

“Again,  _ fuck you _ .”

 

“It’s okay.”  Minhyun pushed at his other leg, giving Seongwu a second to move it before splaying out across him like a starfish.  “Jonghyun likes taking control in bed anyway. It wouldn’t matter that you can barely walk up your stairs without panting.”

 

Seongwu pulled Minhyun’s hair.   _ Hard _ .  Minhyun dug his chin into the soft muscles of Seongwu’s stomach in retaliation.

 

Seongwu yelped, trying to squirm away.  With Minhyun on top of him he didn’t get very far.

 

“You’re horrible, see if I ever let you feed from me again,” Seongwu huffed, giving up.

 

Minhyun hummed, the sound coming out closer to a purr with his belly full of Seongwu’s blood and warmth slowly creeping through his body.  “Liar. You like it. It’s a symbiotic relationship.”

 

“Doesn’t feel symbiotic right now,” Seongwu grumbled like the petulant child he very much was.

 

“What? Because you didn’t get off?”  Minhyun snorted. “I thought we agreed no more touching after you got drunk and cried about how soft and small Jonghyun looks in oversized hoodies.”

 

“We also agreed to  _ never mention that again, _ ” Seongwu choked out, and Minhyun could smell his embarrassment, hear the way his blood was rushing to his face.

 

“If I have to forever remember you saying, and I quote, ‘I want Jonghyun to wreck me’, then so do you.”

 

“Die,” Seongwu pouted.

 

“Mm, been there, done that,” Minhyun mumbled, rubbing his face against the soft material of Seongwu’s sweater.   _ Cashmere _ .

 

He could hear Seongwu mocking him — probably making a dumb, blackmail worthy face in the process — but Minhyun wasn’t paying attention.  He pressed his nose to Seongwu’s sweater and breathed in, a small furrowing forming between his brows. Under Seongwu’s familiar scent there was something else, something he recognized but couldn’t quite place.  Something honey sweet, mixed with the sharp tang of a peach scented body wash. Seongwu, as Minhyun had learned from living together through undergrad, didn’t buy peach scented anything.

 

Minhyun tensed, the breath in he’d been taking stuttering to a stop.

 

One second.  Two. Moments measured by Seongwu’s heartbeats and the soft tapping of his fingers on his phone screen.  Probably scrolling through Jonghyun’s instagram.

 

“Seongwu?”

 

“Mm?”

 

“Whose sweater is this?”

 

Seongwu, to his credit, didn’t outwardly react.  His breath caught a bit in his throat, and his pulse jumped, but even then it wouldn’t have been noticeable had Minhyun not known his tells from a solid four years of watching Seongwu bullshit his way out of late assignment grade deductions.

 

“Mine?”

 

Minhyun groaned, hands curling into fists against Seongwu’s sides as Daniel’s scent slowly filled his head, hunger lancing through him as if he hadn’t just fed a few minutes ago.

 

“Minhyun?” Seongwu sounded worried.  “Should I change out of it?”

 

Minhyun couldn’t bring himself to say the damage was already done, embarrassment thick in his throat even as his fangs elongated in his mouth against his will, pushing into the soft skin of his lower lip.  Luckily, Seongwu knew him just as well as he knew the human. 

 

“I’m starting to get the impression you’ve been greatly underselling how much Daniel affects you,” he said, voice low and soothing as he began to card his fingers through Minhyun’s hair in gentle strokes with one hand while the other rubbed between Minhyun’s shoulders, trying to ease the tension he felt running through Minhyun’s body.  “This isn’t normal, is it?”

 

Minhyun shook his head, taking another deep, unnecessary breath in, giving in now that he knew Seongwu wasn’t going to judge or tease.  “It’s never happened before. I don’t know what to do.”

 

There was an edge of desperation to his voice and he was definitely whining, but he couldn’t bring himself to care about either of those things when every inhale of Daniel’s scent was making warmth curl in his gut.  

 

“Can’t you ask Jonghyun? Isn’t it his job to explain things when weird shit starts happening since, you know, he sired you and all?” Seongwu asked.  

 

Minhyun could hear the small frown in his voice and was endlessly grateful for the fact that he wasn’t pointing out the way Minhyun was starting to shift on top of him, trying to relieve the growing discomfort caused by his tightening jeans.  

 

“And give him something to make fun of me for?” Minhyun hissed, recoiling at the thought even as he pulled himself up Seongwu’s body, settling in to straddle Seongwu’s hips.  He nosed at the unbitten expanse of his friend’s throat, pressing his lips to the jumping pulse point sitting innocently under the skin. “Like hell.”

 

Seongwu snorted, tilting his head back, giving Minhyun the access he was seeking.  He let out a soft sigh when Minhyun’s lips parted, his tongue laving over the skin.  He tasted anticipation, excitement, and something wintry that was inherently Seongwu.

 

“How’re you gonna get through tutoring sessions with Daniel,” Seongwu started, breath hitching when he felt Minhyun’s fangs replace his tongue, “when you get like  _ this _ just from his scent alone?”

 

Worry may have smelled different on everyone, but it always carried the same base undertones.  It was bitter and tangy and Minhyun preferred his meals worry-free.

 

“If I didn’t think I could handle it, I wouldn’t have said yes,” Minhyun sighed.  Even with Seongwu so close, sitting in his room, Minhyun could still pick out Daniel’s scent — peach and honey filling his lungs.  “I’ll manage.”

 

“You said yes because you want Daniel pinned under you,” Seongwu huffed, yelping when Minhyun pinched his side.

 

“‘id not,” Minhyun mumbled, fangs long enough now to garble his speech.

 

“Mm, whatever you say,” he sighed, bringing a hand up to card through Minhyun’s hair again.  A beat of silence before he was continuing with a teasing lilt to his tone, “You know, you could totally pretend I’m Daniel if you want, I won’t get offende-  _ ah! _ ”

 

If Minhyun bit harder and drank a little more than usual, well, what Seongwu couldn’t prove didn’t matter.  And, if Minhyun  _ did _ think of Daniel while he drank, all soft skin and firm muscle, what he might taste like,  _ sound like _ , then he sure as hell wasn’t going to let Seongwu know.

  
  


✙

  
  


Daniel was a full course meal.  FIguratively and literally. Even at nine in the morning after a seven-thirty lecture on 1920s cinematography ( _ “It’s really chill, we just watch movies every class!” _ ), half-asleep, while wearing an oversized hoodie and sweats.  Minhyun found it incredibly unfair. He was also convinced some higher power — or that very vindictive pixie Minki dated last year who thought  _ Minhyun _ was the reason the human broke it off — had it out for him, because why else would Daniel smell so unbearably  _ good _ ?

 

“Hyung?”

 

Minhyun blinked, trying not to look like he’d been zoning out, staring at the sliver of exposed neck Daniel’s hoodie provided.  He cleared his throat. “Yeah? Sorry, what were you saying?”

 

“I was asking if Professor Wu asks for specific scene interpretations on his Early Renaissance test,” Daniel said, a smile playing on his lips.  

 

There was a knowing glint to his eyes that had Minhyun tensing, worried he’d been caught staring, worried that Daniel somehow  _ knew _ .  But then it was gone and Minhyun was left with the full force of Daniel’s crescent-eyed smile.

 

_ Oh, god. _

 

Minhyun ducked his head, looking back at his notes, trying to reign in his focus.  “Not really? I mean, not for quizzes. You’ll need to know that for the long responses on his unit tests, but you cover so much for those that it’s pretty much random which time period you get questions on.”

 

“Mm,” Minhyun could hear Daniel twirling his pen around his fingers, the soft  _ tak-tak-tak _ as it hit his knuckles, only noticeable to someone with Minhyun’s hearing.  “Cool, cool. Good to know.”

 

“He really likes when you include extra explanations of any biblical or mythological references you see in Renaissance art, also. Seongwu was actually the one who figured that out the one time he actually paid attention in class,” Minhyun softly snorted, still flipping through his notes.  

 

His neat handwriting was interspersed with Seongwu’s marginally inappropriate doodles and Jonghyun’s deceptively calm messages screaming at him to  _ “kindly stop making me sit next to Seongwu, you fucker” _ — in just about every one of their shared languages besides Korean so Seongwu wouldn’t understand.   _ Ah, good times. _

 

“I don’t know how detailed you want to get, but Jonghyun and I kind of lived through it so,” Minhyun let out an embarrassed laugh, feeling Daniel’s eyes on him, and maybe he shouldn’t have just admitted to living through part of the Renaissance but oh well, too fucking late.  “If you want I could definitely point those out to you.”

 

“That’d be great!” Daniel said and Minhyun could hear him lean forward, feel his pulse through the table they were at as he propped himself up against it.

 

Minhyun wanted to raise his head and see how the younger man was sitting, see what had caused his scent to drift over, stronger than it had been before.  He also wanted to give in and ask if Daniel would like to drift over to a dark corner with him, but all those things fell under the same category of being A Very Bad Idea.

 

So, Minhyun swallowed down those urges and soldiered on.  “I can scan my notes then, or just lend them to you? I color coded the tabs for each time period so it should be pretty easy to-”

 

“That’d be great, hyung,” Daniel said again, interrupting, the way his tone dipped freezing Minhyun on the spot, “but I was actually wondering if we could take a little break now.”

 

Minhyun frowned, confusion overriding his previous decision as he finally lifted his gaze to meet Daniel’s.  It was a mistake, to say the least. First off, Daniel was leaning way too close. Second, he’d crossed his arms over the table in such a way that the neck of his hoodie fell loose, showing off a fair amount of both shoulders and the dip of his collarbones.  Minhyun choked, coughing away the distressed whimper that had almost escaped at the sight.

 

“I was thinking maybe we could get a bite to eat,” Daniel said, tilting his head.  

 

Minhyun sucked in a shaky breath, eyes darting to Daniel’s exposed neck before he could help himself.  Daniel had dabbed on some cologne that day, a cool woodsy scent that Minhyun was pretty sure belonged to Seongwu.  It’d been the only reason Minhyun had been able to even semi focus this entire time. Of course, it did absolutely nothing with Daniel so close talking about  _ grabbing a fucking bite _ .

 

Minhyun was dying.

 

On the inside, though, because Daniel was looking straight at him, watching.  His eyes so very, very dark.

 

Minhyun let out a weak, breathy chuckle that just barely passed as normal, giving a small shake of his head as his eyes tried to find anything to look at besides the human in front of him.  “I uh, I’m good. Really. But, if you’re hungry you could definitely go. We can always pick up later this week.”

 

“Oh?” Daniel pouted, and  _ fuck _ , his lips looked so pink and soft and Minhyun just wanted to lick the vanilla chapstick right off them.  “I’m fine, I just thought you seemed hungry is all.”

 

It took a few seconds for Minhyun’s brain to process that sentence, but when it did the effect was instantaneous.  A vicious combination of hunger and arousal flooded his system, heightening all of his senses to an almost painful degree.  He could taste Daniel’s scent on his tongue, the warmth Minhyun knew he would find if he were to touch, grab,  _ kiss _ .  Smell the blend of his emotions, even if he could only pick out a few with any surety.   _ Hear _ Daniel’s heartbeat thundering away in his ears, each wet glug making his muscles wind tighter and tighter until-

 

_ Crack! _

 

And that was the table.  Solid wood. Splintered in Minhyun’s grasp like a twig.   _ Shit _ .

 

“Haha, me?” Minhyun croaked out, his voice cracking.   _ Fuck, fuck, fuck _ .  “Not at all, why would you think that?”

 

He’d fed from Seongwu twice and Aron had hooked him up with a supply of blood bags from one of his doctor friends.  He was  _ fine _ .

 

Daniel hummed, eyes heavy on Minhyun’s.  He hadn’t even looked down to the destroyed wood yet, casually holding Minhyun’s gaze through it all.  

 

His mouth was still turned down in a concerned pout even as he said, “You’ve just been biting your pen a lot is all.”

 

_ My pen? Wha- _

 

Minhyun glanced down at where the pen he’d been using sat innocently on top of his notebook.

 

_ Oh. Well. _

 

The pen was, to put it kindly, mangled.  It’s plastic body was crunched and scratched where his teeth — the strong points of his fangs specifically, which had partially slid  _ out _ the second Daniel had slid  _ in _ to his seat — had pierced and gnawed on it.  It wasn’t even his pen. He’d borrowed it from Minki the day before and forgotten to give it back.  Minhyun was pretty sure it’d been a joke gift from Aron.

 

Oh man.  Minki was going to murder him.

 

“It’s a,” Minhyun frowned down at the pen, wishing he could just make it disappear, “bad habit?”

 

“Huh.”

 

“Yeah.”

 

It was a horrible lie.  Anyone who knew Minhyun at all knew that over his long life he’d found solace in keeping things clean and organized.  When things happened that he couldn’t control, he’d always had that. Having the disgusting habit of teething like a baby didn’t fall into either clean  _ or _ organized.

 

He couldn’t exactly say that  _ ‘Oh, I was subconsciously thinking of sinking my teeth into you and taking as much as you’re willing to give, no biggie’ _ , though, because that was a hundred and ten percent a biggie.  So, gross habit it was.

 

Daniel, magically unfazed through everything — which, how? Minhyun  _ literally broke the table _ — stared at him a beat longer, as if giving the vampire a chance to change his answer.  When Minhyun didn’t say anything else, too busy thanking whatever curse first made vampires that his kind didn’t sweat, his lips pressed together in what Minhyun could’ve sworn was a frustrated line. 

 

“Okay,” he said, leaning back into his chair.  

 

He was still staring, but his expression had gone neutral. 

 

“Okay?”  

 

Minhyun hated how hopeful he sounded but he was literally vibrating with the need to get his hands on Daniel at this point, and any form of relief was more than welcome, because flinging himself across the table like some wild animal was out of the question for obvious reasons. 

 

Daniel shrugged.  “Yeah. Okay.” He picked up his pen and tapped at Minhyun’s notebook, a quick flash of wrist drawing Minhyun’s attention before he could help himself.  “So, biblical and mythological references. Can you give some examples in relation to specific pieces? I kind of have a paper due at the end of the week.”

 

He gave Minhyun a sheepish grin when he said it, chuckling low in his chest. 

 

Minhyun barely registered it, too overwhelmed with the sudden lack of tension in the air.  It was like a switch had been flipped, Daniel back to his easy, friendly smiling self instead of whatever...  _ that _ had been. 

 

_ Hot _ , an unhelpful voice said in his head.   _ That was hot _ . 

 

“Sure.”  A pause. Minhyun’s brows drew down into a small frown.  “Wait. Is that why Jaehwan’s been behaving so well in the class I TA for?”

 

Daniel blinked and Minhyun could hear the air he choked on get stuck in his throat.

 

“No comment?” he said, going for innocent, giving Minhyun a smile that had his front teeth popping over his bottom lip like a bunny’s.

 

“Uh huh,” he raised an eyebrow.  “Tell him if he’s going to try to butter me up,” Minhyun started, closing his notebook and awkwardly sweeping his chewed up pen into his bag, “then he’ll have to try better than writing bad one-liners at the end of all his assignments, and in place of  _ actual _ answers on quizzes.”

 

Daniel snorted, quiet laughter shaking his body.  He ran a hand — a very nice hand, with very pronounced veins — through his hair, the dyed blonde strands looking softer than they had any right to.  “Will do.”

 

Minhyun hummed, reaching out a tentative hand to tap at Daniel’s notebook.  “So, story time?”

 

Daniel’s smile brightened and he laughed a little louder, his eyes crinkling at the corners and his heart beating that happy rhythm again.  It made Minhyun want to kiss him.

 

Wait.

 

What?

 

“Sure,” Daniel continued before Minhyun could unpack that last thought, “Where do you wanna start?”

  
  
  


✙

  
  
  


Minhyun had never really regretted receiving the bite.  When Jonghyun had found him, he’d been half dead in the streets, the small farming village he’d come from having been the victim of a ruthless young lord with too much time on his hands and not enough mercy.  He’d been angry and in pain, covered in blood that he knew wasn’t all his own, and all he’d wanted, more than anything, was to  _ live _ .

 

He’d viewed the change as a second chance.  A second life, albeit a long one.

 

It came with its pros and cons, and he’d learned to live with them.  He’d learned how to focus his senses and not get constantly distracted by every new scent or sound.  He’d figured out how to rein in the urge to feed, keeping his fangs in check so as not to come off as threatening.  He couldn’t do much about the color of his eyes, a deep red that glowed in low lighting, but he could direct his gaze so it wasn’t as...intimidating.

 

Some of it he’d figured out on his own.  Most of it he’d been taught by Jonghyun, and then later Aron.

 

All of it was useless in the face of Park Woojin and Park Jihoon.

 

“Just kill me now,” Minhyun groaned, dropping his head onto the plastic surface of the dining hall table they were all set up at with a loud  _ thunk _ .  “I swear it’ll be less painful.” 

 

“Nope,” Jonghyun said, chin propped on his fist as he worked on a lab write-up.  “If I have to suffer through these monsters, so do you.”

 

“You know we can hear you, right?” Woojin asked, judgement clear in his tone despite the fact that he’d just been loudly telling Jihoon,  _ “Fuck you, I can totally fit that many marshmallows in my mouth!” _ .

 

“Yes,” Minhyun said, “And, unfortunately, we can hear you too.”  He lifted his head again to send a pointed glare at the younger boy, nose twitching at the smell of dog that hung in the air, ever present wherever the werewolf was.  “Don’t you have anything better to do? Somewhere to be?”

 

“Jonghyun hyung said he’d help me with my math lab,” Woojin said at the same time that Jihoon tipped up his chin with a sniff and said, “What crawled up your ass, hyung.”

 

“Language,” Jonghyun chided.

 

“Brat,” Minhyun growled.

 

“Leave Minhyun alone,” Seonho pouted, chucking Minhyun’s highlighter cap at the older boy, hitting Jihoon right between the eyes.

 

Silence.

 

“I- Wha-” Minhyun faltered, narrowing his eyes at the overgrown child clinging to his arm, “When did you even get here?”

 

“Like twenty minutes ago,” Seonho said flippantly, ignoring Jihoon’s offended squawk.

 

“We’ve just been sitting here,” Guanlin added in with a shrug,  _ and what the fuck? _ “Is the Daniel you’ve been whining about to Jonghyun hyung the one who’s friends with Seongwu?”

 

“Yes,” Woojin chirped before Minhyun could even open his mouth.

 

“I don’t get why you’re freaking out about wanting to bite him when he-”

 

“No, no, no,” Jonghyun said, cutting him off, still staring at him and Seonho with the same mildly freaked out look Minhyun was giving them.  “Don’t think you get to gloss,” he waved a hand at them, “ _ this _ over. We didn’t hear you coming.”

 

“So?” Seonho shrugged, easily meeting Jonghyun’s suspicious stare.  Even his heartbeat was steady, with no obvious giveaways in his scent.

 

“ _ We _ didn’t  _ hear you _ ,” Jonghyun emphasized.  “How?”

 

“I don’t know what you’re talking abou-”

 

“Daehwi or Somi?” Minhyun asked, an eyebrow raised.

 

“Neither,” Seonho replied, not missing a beat.

 

“Daehwi,” Woojin chimed in.  “I saw him skulking around the chem labs the other day.”

 

“ _ Snitch _ ,” Seonho hissed, leaning forward to glare at the wolf.  “I’m gonna tell Daehwi that you told.”

 

“And I’m going to be sharing with Nayoung what one of her little proteges has been getting up to,” Jonghyun cut in.  He turned to Guanlin, “I get why Seonho volunteered to be a guinea pig, but why did you?”

 

Guanlin shrugged.  “Daehwi said he wanted to test his new potion out on something supernatural. Didn’t see why not.”

 

“It could’ve been poisonous?” Woojin’s tone was laced with the concern and general disbelief that someone would trust Lee Daehwi, prodigal witch, that came with years of knowing the younger boy.  “Or turned you purple for a month.”

 

“How is being turned purple worse than being poisoned?” Jihoon asked, nose scrunched up, swiping what was left of Woojin’s burger and taking a big bite.

 

Woojin shivered.  “Trust me, it is.”

 

“Well,” Guanlin drawled, judging Woojin with a tepid stare, “the only drawback this time was us having to sit through Minhyun hyung’s love life crisis.”  He paused, frowning. “And people bumping into us a lot. That wasn’t fun.”

 

“No one asked you to listen,” Minhyun groused, trying to bury himself back in the reading he had to do for his afternoon seminar.  He was probably going to have to relocate since, if the kids were here now, too, he’d never be able to focus. “You’re free to leave whenever you want.”

 

Seonho, if anything, clung to him tighter.  Minhyun sighed. The kid had a strong grip for a human.

 

“I’m good.”

 

This time Jonghyun sighed.  A small, long-suffering sound that only the three (four? Minhyun still wasn’t sure Jihoon was actually human, never having been able to pin his scent down) supernaturals at the table caught.  Well, two, considering Woojin was back to bickering with Jihoon.

 

“I don’t get why it’s such an issue, though,” Guanlin said, sprawling across the table like a lazy starfish.  “I doubt Daniel would mind letting you bite him. He seemed perfectly fine after seeing you feed off Seongwu at Minki’s Halloween party last year.”

 

“We don’t speak of that party,” was Minhyun’s automatic response, just the memory of that night making him want to die of mortification.

 

Guanlin rolled his eyes.  “It wasn’t that bad.”

 

“Yes it was,” Jonghyun and Minhyun said at the same time, for slightly different but definitely related reasons.

 

It was traumatizing for Minhyun because Daniel had walked in on him with his teeth buried in Seongwu’s neck, a hand down Seongwu’s pants.  It’d felt like getting punched in the gut, Daniel’s scent and emotions rising up like a tidal wave, slamming into Minhyun and sending him stumbling back.  Minhyun had left that night embarrassed beyond belief with Daniel’s dark, blown out gaze burned in his mind and a bone deep hunger singing in his veins.

 

For Jonghyun, well, Minhyun’s pretty sure that before Seongwu had come looking for him, grumbling about stubborn idiots and reeking of sexual frustration, they’d been making out.  Possibly more. At the very least something had finally happened between the two, because that had a direct lead up to Seongwu putting a stop to any type of frisky touching when Minhyun fed from him.

 

Minhyun thought the sentiment was sweet.  Jonghyun would definitely appreciate it when he got his head out of his ass and gave in.

 

Regardless, Guanlin just rolled his eyes again, world weary at fifty.  “Whatever. I still think you should just talk to him. The way things are, you always look caught between wanting to jump him and run from him.”

 

Minhyun made a strangled noise while everyone but Seonho — who’d spotted someone he knew and flitted away to mooch food off them — burst out laughing.  Even Jonghyun was smiling, a hand over his mouth to hide his snickers.  _ Traitor _ .

 

“You’re spending way too much time with Seongwu, and it’s not my fault,” he defended.  “He just smells so,” he waved his hand in the air, wincing knowing that what he was about to say was opening himself up for more teasing, “ _ good _ .”

 

“Really?” Woojin snorted.  “He smells like ramen half the time we hang out.”

 

“He smells pretty normal to me too,” Guanlin said.  “Not like ramen because I don’t hang out with him and Jaehwan when those two are gaming, but like clean clothes, whatever fruity body wash he uses, and cologne. Just like every other human.”

 

“What exactly does he smell like to  _ you _ , Minhyun?” Jonghyun asked slowly, brows furrowed and eyes narrowed, a calculating edge to them.

 

And  _ this _ was exactly why Minhyun wasn’t planning on telling Jonghyun about the finer details of his Daniel problem.

 

“None of your business,” Minhyun grumbled, thoroughly done with the entire shift in conversation.  Just thinking about Daniel was making his jaw ache and his fangs inch out. It was ridiculous. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I actually need to get this reading done so I’ll just be,” he stood up, grabbing his stuff and gesturing towards the exit, “going on my merry way to anywhere but here.”

 

“Have fun on your next study date with Daniel hyung,” Woojin teased, his voice following Minhyun out of the dining hall, the words echoing in his head until late into the night.

  
  


✙

  
  


The next tutoring session went only marginally better than the first, if only because Daniel didn’t bring up anything food related this time.

 

The human showed up smelling of chlorine and happiness, and Minhyun could only assume swim practice had gone well.  Daniel was thankfully properly bundled up, the crisp fall air and wet hair he was still sporting forcing him to wear extra layers.

 

“You look good today, hyung,” he said, tone warm, eyes even warmer as they dragged down Minhyun’s body.

 

Minhyun let out a startled laugh at the sudden compliment, ducking his head because Daniel’s full attention was more than he could handle, if all their past interactions were anything to go by.  He managed a quick thanks, offering Daniel a seat so they could get started, all without stuttering, and counted it a win.

 

Daniel had easily complied, and things had progressed rather smoothly.

  
  


The one  _ after _ that was a lowkey wreck, though.

 

The library had been hosting an event that day, forcing Minhyun and Daniel to relocate to a campus cafe instead.

 

That had been problem number one and, in hindsight, a karmic red flag.

 

Turned out they weren’t the only ones with that issue, or idea, and they had to go hunting for  _ another _ place to work, eventually settling on a corner booth in one of the undergrad dining halls.

 

This brought them to problem number two, which was: they ended up sitting next to each other.

 

Minhyun nearly bolted at the realization that they were going to be pressed shoulder to shoulder, thigh to thigh for the next hour, Jaehwan and another underclassman in their year (“Jung Sewoon, nice to meet you”) sliding into the seats across them for dinner.  He was literally on the edge of his seat, ready to run, willing to suffer the teasing likely to ensue when Seongwu heard about it from Daniel later, but then Daniel smiled at him. A shy, soft smile that had warmth blooming in Minhyun’s chest.

 

That, coupled with the nervous beat of his heart and hints of eagerness smothered in something else rolling off the younger man in waves, had Minhyun staying put.

 

By the end of that tutoring session, Minhyun was sure centuries had been shaved off his immortal lifespan.  He couldn’t count the number of times he’d frozen up from Daniel leaning too close, his hair brushing against Minhyun’s skin.

 

Up close, Daniel’s scent was almost suffocating, the concentration of it combined with the warmth he radiated leaving Minhyun’s head foggy and dazed.  It  _ physically hurt _ keeping his teeth in check with how much they wanted to slide out.  With how much he wanted to lean over and close the almost non-existent distance between Daniel and him and just...mm, bury his face in Daniel’s neck.

 

Minhyun was  _ suffering _ .

  
  


✙

  
  


The pattern continued.  For every step forward Minhyun took, in being able to be in Daniel’s presence and not get distracted by the need to bite, he took three back the next time they met.  Back and forth, and back and forth. Every. Fucking. Time.

 

He’d never felt so tired.

 

The thing was, it always, without fail, came back to the same core issue.  At the end of the day, Minhyun just wanted to pin Daniel to the wall and drink from him until he  _ begged  _ for more.  That was it.  His whole problem in a nutshell.

 

Minhyun couldn’t even escape when they went out as a whole group, Seongwu’s and his friend circles meshing and coming together for loud nights out eating barbeque and drinking soju.  No matter where he sat, Daniel would somehow always end up next to him, shoulders brushing, his broad form slouching forward and to the side, curling towards Minhyun like a flower towards sun.

 

It left Minhyun breathless and twitchy, his hands itching to reach up and touch, his fangs eager to claim.  He’d get distracted staring at the curve of Daniel’s neck, the angle of his jaw. Eyes drawn to the way Daniel’s hair managed to get mussed up despite his best efforts, the result of Daniel’s own fingers running through it as the night went on and others petting and cooing at him.

 

Minhyun forced a sigh through his nose as Minki did just that, already past tipsy and inching into drunk, draped over Daniel’s other shoulder while the meat cooked.

 

Minhyun wanted to do that too.  It was frustrating that, despite how naturally affectionate he was (“You  _ cling _ , Minhyun. It’s like we’re all stuffed animals to you”), the one person he actually wanted to touch was the one person he couldn’t.  At least not without taking the risk that he wouldn’t let go, and wouldn’t that be an awkward conversation.

 

“You okay, hyung?”

 

Minhyun’s eyes snapped up, refocusing on Daniel’s and oh- how long had he been staring?

 

“I’m fine,” he said, forcing a smile onto his face even as Minki nuzzled into Daniel’s neck, shooting Minhyun a smirk that was one-hundred percent taunting and eighty-five percent drunk.  

 

“You sure?”  Daniel leaned closer, dislodging Minki in the process.  Minhyun tried not to smile at that. “You’ve been kind of out of it all night.”

 

_ Because of you _ , Minhyun thought, willing himself not to flinch back when Daniel pressed up against him.  His breath smelled like soju where it fanned out across Minhyun’s mouth, his cheeks pink from the heat of the restaurant and the shots he’d already downed.

 

“I’m really fine,” Minhyun reassured him, throat dry and voice catching.   _ Too close _ .   _ He’s too close. _

 

“Mm,” Daniel hummed, a dopey smile tugging at his lips as he propped his chin on Minhyun’s shoulder, either ignoring or not noticing the full-body shudder that wracked through Minhyun’s body at the contact.  “That you are.”

 

“I-”

 

The sound of glass shattering saved him from floundering.

 

“Holy shit, Minhyun broke his glass!”

 

Or not.

 

Minhyun looked at his hand, uncurling it to let the glass shards fall onto the table, watching in mild fascination and mounting horror as the blood he’d been sipping at dribbled sticky lines down his arm.

 

“That sucks,” Daniel commented while Seongwu called out that he’d get some napkins.  “Sure you’re okay?”

 

Minhyun turned back to him, a less than convincing  _ “Yes” _ on his tongue, he froze, unnecessary breath catching in his chest.

 

Daniel’s eyes were dark and heavy lidded, his smile closer to a smirk, and his scent-  _ fuck _ , his  _ scent _ .  It was a thick mix of bright excitement, sharp satisfaction, and something sweetly spiced that Minhyun could’ve sworn was arousal.

 

Minhyun swallowed, eyes dropping to Daniel’s mouth, watching his pink tongue flash out and lick across his bottom lip.  “I’m just peachy.”

  
  


✙

  
  


Two weeks after The Barbeque Incident — Minki’s idea, proudly named with a shit eating grin — things came to a boil.

 

In hindsight, Minhyun should’ve seen it coming.  He’d been busy, though, between prep for his thesis proposal, helping Daniel study for his art history midterm which was only a week away, and trying to keep up with all of his own classes, the thought that he was forgetting to do something crucial had just slipped his mind.

 

He was just so exhausted, and, really, that should’ve been a big warning sign.

  
  


“Didn’t think vampires could get tired,” Daniel chuckled, the sound resonating weird in Minhyun’s ears.

 

“We can sleep, you know,” Minhyun mumbled, head feeling light and floaty despite how heavy all his limbs felt.  “We don’t need it, but we can.”

 

Daniel laughed again.  He did that a lot, Minhyun had come to notice, especially since The Barbeque Incident.  It was cute and extremely endearing.

 

“Hmm, you sure about that, hyung?” he teased, reaching forward to rub a thumb gently over the skin under Minhyun’s eye, palm bumping against his cheek.  “Because you seem like you could use a nap right now.”

 

“Mm,” Minhyun breathed, eyes falling closed as he leaned into the touch, relishing in the warmth Daniel radiated and the thrumming of his pulse, “‘m not tired.”

 

Daniel’s fingers twitched, his pulse jumping, a loud hiccup that seemed to echo in the quiet, dark corner of the library they’d situated themselves in.

 

Daniel scoffed, managing to sound helplessly endeared despite the disbelief and hints of worry lacing his voice, “You’re definitely something. This is usually the part where you freak out and try to run away.”

 

Minhyun sighed, nuzzling into Daniel’s palm, his words barely registering.  It was hard to hear anything over Daniel’s pulse, so strong and rich. He took a deep breath in, letting the sweet, honeyed scent of Daniel’s blood fill his lungs, his exhale coming out closer to a moan than a sigh.

 

“Hyung?”

 

The question came out breathy, ending on a startled yelp when Minhyun left a trail of cool kisses down to his wrist, mouth opening directly over Daniel’s pulse.  

 

“You smell so good, Daniel,” Minhyun mumbled, lips brushing over his skin.  A voice in the back of his head was practically screaming that he shouldn’t have said that, but it was so quiet and he was _so_ _hungry_.  “‘s not fair.”

 

“Hyung,” Daniel’s voice was firmer, deeper, something dark coloring it.  His scent spiked along with his heartbeat, and that was definitely arousal, thick and alluring.  “When was the last time you ate?”

 

Minhyun shrugged, or he thought he did, fangs sliding out and dragging along the thin skin of Daniel’s wrist.  “Dunno. Been busy.”

 

Daniel gasped, the sound shooting through Minhyun, settling in his gut to burn.  “Too busy to eat?”

 

“Mm.”  Minhyun licked over Daniel’s pulse point, sucking lightly, tasting.   _ Don’t do it. _

 

“You must be hungry, then.”

 

Minhyun whined in response, fangs fully extended and aching.   _ Don’t do it! _

 

Daniel’s heartbeat was thundering in his ears, faster than he’d ever heard it, anticipation making the air around them heavy.  Another hand came up to tentatively stroke through Minhyun’s hair, long, strong fingers gripping lightly at the strands and scratching over his scalp.  Minhyun practically purred, sucking harder at Daniel’s skin and shifting in his seat.

 

They were alone in their corner of the library.  Alone in an area with no natural light and little artificial light.  The odds of anyone walking in on them were slim to none. All Minhyun had to do was press his teeth down and…

 

He didn’t even think to swallow down the broken moan that bubbled up.  All he had to do was press his teeth down and then he’d finally —  _ finally _ — get to drink. 

 

“ _ Minhyun. _ ”

 

Minhyun’s eyes snapped open, where they were and what he was about to do splashing over him in one big cold wave of horror.

 

“ _ Fuck _ ,” he hissed, shooting back so fast he felt the wall of the alcove they were sitting in crack, plaster raining down onto his shoulders and hair.

 

“Hyung,” Daniel was reaching out to him, eyes wide with panic, his emotions rushing to the surface so quickly they clogged Minhyun’s lungs. 

 

Too much, too much,  _ too much _ .  Minhyun’s fangs pierced his bottom lip.  He couldn’t  _ breathe _ . 

 

“Hyung, please.”

 

“ _ No _ ,” Minhyun lurched away. 

 

He was so hungry, and Daniel was too close.  Fuck, he should’ve noticed sooner. This was exactly what he’d been trying to avoid. 

 

“I’m sorry,” he managed, the words somehow not coming out garbled.  “I’m sorry.”

 

“No, wait-“

 

Daniel was reaching for him again, a frown marring his face.  Minhyun felt his gut twist, guilt and want blending together until he couldn’t tell where one emotion started and the other ended. 

 

Minhyun moved faster than Daniel’s eyes could track, a hand clamped over his mouth, trying to hide the fangs he knew were peeking through.  

 

“I’m sorry,” he said again, his voice sad and broken.  “I have to go.”

 

“Minhyun-”

 

“I’m sorry.”

 

And then he ran, forcing his legs to carry him away as fast as possible, ignoring the way every fibre of his being begged him to turn around.  To go back. To feed.

 

He just...ran.

  
  


✙

  
  


Minhyun met Seongwu at a party sophomore year in some grungy campus bar with too little lighting and too sticky everything.  He’d been a little blood-drunk and Seongwu had been a bit drunk-drunk, both deciding that the other was definitely too pretty to pass up.  They’d wound up back at Seongwu’s dorm, Minhyun hungry and Seongwu eager.

 

Seongwu had been hard and horny, and Minhyun had had an idea of what he was looking for, but then Seongwu had come in his pants the second Minhyun had taken his first gulp and Minhyun had burst out laughing, almost choking on the blood in his mouth.  Seongwu had whined, embarrassed and petty, leaving Minhyun to giggle to himself on the floor while he went to change his clothes.

 

They’d been friends ever since.

 

It was why Minhyun found himself knocking on Seongwu’s door now, knuckles nearly denting the wood with how much force he was using.

 

“You look like you’re about two seconds away from a panic attack,” Seongwu said when he opened the door.  “What happened?”

 

“Can I come in?” Minhyun asked in lieu of an answer.

 

Seongwu stepped to the side, his expression shifting, concern seeping into his scent and softening his eyes.  “Always.”

 

Minhyun gave him a jerky nod in thanks and walked in, getting as far as the living room before he started pacing, running a shaky hand through his hair.  He took the first proper breath since leaving the library and shuddered. Daniel’s scent was everywhere. He'd almost forgotten Daniel lived here, too.

 

Minhyun felt his fangs throb where they’d retracted, threatening to slide out again.  He whimpered, collapsing onto the couch.

 

“Shit, you don’t look so good,” Seongwu stated, blunt out of worry.  He came to sit by him, raising a tentative hand, his heartbeat loud but not as distracting as Daniel’s had been.  “What happened?”

 

“I was hungry,” Minhyun told him, hunching forward, curling into himself.

 

Seongwu’s hand came down between Minhyun’s shoulder blades, rubbing a soothing line up and down his back.  “You’re always hungry when it comes to Daniel,” he said lightly.

 

“I’ve had so many other things on my plate,” Minhyun said, fingers picking at the fraying upholstery of Seongwu’s ancient couch.  He could feel himself starting to ramble but he couldn’t keep the words down. “I just- I hadn’t thought about it, I didn’t- I mean- how- I didn’t think I  _ could _ forget about it as long as I was spending so much time around him, I-” his hands curled into fists, digging into the couch, “ _ I was handling it _ .”

 

“Minhyun.”

 

“I tried to bite him.”

 

He could hear the brief pause in Seongwu’s breathing.  The small sigh that sounded suspiciously like  _ “Finally” _ .

 

“And?” he asked.

 

“And I tried to bite him!” Minhyun spat, his whole body tense, hunger feeding in to his overall distress.

 

“You say that like it’s a bad thing.”

 

Minhyun whipped his head up to glare at Seongwu because what the fuck?  “It  _ is _ a bad thing. I lost control and almost fed from him!”

 

Seongwu shrugged, entirely unfazed in the face of a snarling vampire.  “It’s only a bad thing if he didn’t want it, and even then, if you’d  _ actually _ bitten him. Which you didn’t because you’re a freak of nature with a will of steel, I mean, if  _ I _ was hungry and faced with a donut, I would’ve scarfed it down in two seconds flat.”

 

“That’s because you have no self-control and-” Minhyun frowned, “Did you just compare Daniel to a donut?”

 

“He’s a snack. It suits him.”

 

Minhyun snorted, the tightness in his chest loosening a bit.  “D’you make a habit of calling all your friends snacks?” 

 

“Only the fit ones,” Seongwu smiled.

 

Minhyun huffed out a laugh.  “Of course.”

 

A beat of comfortable silence, two, three, where Minhyun felt himself calming down, Seongwu radiating nothing but fondness.

 

“You know,” Seongwu started, slow and careful, “I still don’t really get why it’s such a big deal that you want to feed from him. He’s hot and chill. You’re hot and hungry. Why not just go for it?”

 

“You make it sound so easy,” Minhyun complained.

 

“It is. I mean,” Seongwu tugged lightly at Minhyun’s hair, “it was for us.”

 

“We were drunk and on the same wavelength of dumb and horny,” Minhyun snorted, “that tends to make things easier.”  He picked at a long thread sticking out from the couch cushion seams, wincing when it unspooled but didn’t snap. Oops.  “Besides, we were friends by the first time I really drank from you.”

 

“And you’re not friends with Daniel?” Seongwu asked, his tone teasing.

 

“I just tutor him,” Minhyun grumbled.

 

“Liar.”

 

Minhyun frowned, sitting up straight to properly stare down Seongwu.  “I’m not-”

 

“So marathoning all the Marvel movies before going to watch the latest Avengers with him in theatres was for studying? Huh, didn’t realize the interpersonal relations between Iron Man and Captain America were relevant to Baroque era paintings.”

 

If Minhyun could blush, he’d be bright red.  As it was, he felt what little blood he had in his system move sluggishly towards his ears.

 

“He needed a break.”

 

“Uh huh, and going out for chicken and beer?”

 

“He was hungry after practice. His stomach kept growling. He couldn’t focus.”

 

“Mhm. And that time you bought him a giant pack of gummies?” 

 

“I-” Minhyun blinked, getting progressively more flustered.  “He got an ‘A’ on his analysis and placed at his latest meet. He worked hard for all that, I just thought he might appreciate the snack.”

 

“He came home smiling and talking non-stop about how  _ amazing _ you are, and then proceeded to polish it off in one sitting,” Seongwu deadpanned.  “And, just so you know, I’ve known him longer than you have, and even  _ I’ve _ never spoiled him this much.”

 

“It’s not-” Minhyun bit out a noise of frustration, feeling better physically as the sun set outside, “What’s your point here? That I take care of him too much?”

 

“That you take care of him more than even a friend would,” Seongwu said, shifting on the couch so he could face Minhyun fully, expression serious enough to keep Minhyun from trying to interrupt, from trying to deny, “That if your whole reason for freaking out is because you think you’re not friends at this point and therefore you’re crossing a line, then you’re an actual idiot.”

 

“Hey!”

 

Being called an idiot by Ong Seongwu, who took a math course that he promptly failed just to be in a class with Jonghyun, actually stung.

 

“I only speak the truth,” Seongwu sniffed imperiously.  “Besides, you haven’t even asked Daniel what his opinion is on any of this. How would you know what he’s okay with or not okay with?”

 

“He looked scared today, Seongwu.”

 

Seongwu rolled his eyes so hard Minhyun was almost impressed.  “God, you’re stupid. Did he seem scared before or after you panicked and ran from him?”

 

Minhyun paused, wincing.  “I’m not really sure.”

 

“Awesome. Did you even stop to consider that maybe the emotions you were reading off him had to do with  _ your _ reaction, and nothing to do with what you’d been about to do?” 

 

No, but Minhyun wasn’t about to admit that.  Not when Seongwu was on a roll, calling him an idiot left, right, and center.  He’d just freaked the fuck out and left, his fight or flight instinct generally stuck on flight when it came to Daniel.

 

Seongwu, despite his poor decision making abilities, was sharp where it counted, though, and read Minhyun like an open book.  “I didn’t think so.”

 

Minhyun knew he was pouting and didn’t care.  Vampire mystique was a load of bullshit and besides Jonghyun (equally as old and in the same boat), Minki (a terror when given an opening), Dongho (who liked to tease as much as Minki), and Aron (who was barely around, swallowed up by his residency program), Seongwu was the only other person he could be petty around who wouldn’t look at him like he'd grown a third head.

 

Because, to be fair, it was a bit odd when a vampire, especially one you knew was older, acted like a stubborn child.

 

“I asked Jonghyun the other day,” Seongwu continued, eyes taking on an edge that said he knew something that Minhyun didn’t and he was enjoying  _ every second of it _ , “about your whole,” he scrunched his nose, looking for the right word, “situation.”

 

Minhyun blanched.  “Seongwu,” he whined.

 

Seongwu just waved him off.  “You weren’t handling it. At all. So I asked.”

 

Minhyun bit his lip, debating whether he wanted to know what the answer had been, if there’d been any.  “What- what’d he say?”

 

“That he knew you were hiding how bad things had gotten and he’d ask Aron because he had no fucking clue,” Seongwu grinned.  Minhyun rolled his eyes. Figures. “So he asked Aron and he told Jonghyun something interesting.”

 

Minhyun perked up.  “Well?”

 

A cause meant there was a way to fix it.  To stop it. He could be around Daniel and not feel like jumping him.  He could even-

 

Minhyun let out a shaky breath.

 

He could even ask him out on a date.

 

Seongwu tilted his head, a slow smile that reeked of mischief pulling at his lips and lighting up his face.  “I think you need to sit down and talk to Daniel. Actually talk to him. No, no, don’t look at me like I just suggested you kill one of his cats, Minhyun, all I’m saying is talk with him and tell him what’s been going on.”

 

“That sounds like a horrible idea,” Minhyun said weakly, hating how reasonable Seongwu’s suggestion was.

 

“Yeah, well, I think he deserves to know you aren’t running away because you don’t like him, but because you pop a boner every time you’re around him.”

 

Minhyun nearly choked.  “I do not!”

 

“Do too, which is hilarious but,”  Seongwu paused, chewing the inside of his cheek, pulse beating a little faster, like he wasn’t sure if he should say what he was about to, but was going to anyway.  “He likes you Minhyun.”

 

Minhyun blinked.  He’d never met someone Daniel didn’t take to and he said as much, “He likes everyone.”

 

“No,” Seongwu laughed, the sound too loud for Minhyun’s hunger sharpened hearing, “he really doesn’t. Look, I’m not saying confront him now, because I think you’d either have a meltdown or go straight for the jugular, but don’t avoid him. Don’t put this off. Please?”

 

Minhyun ran a hand through his hair.  Seongwu was rarely this serious. It didn’t sit well with him.  It meant his friend knew a lot more than he did, saw more of the bigger picture.  It didn’t make Minhyun mad per se, because to get him angry was a feat in and of itself, but realizing he was being left in the dark about something that directly involved and impacted him left a bitter taste in his mouth. 

 

Minhyun sighed.  This was too much for one day.  He just wanted to go home, drink a blood pack or ten and wallow in the cool darkness of his room.

 

With Seongwu observing him, he stood, conscious of every awkward pull of his muscles after running over here on fumes. 

 

“I’ll do my best.”

 

Seongwu’s eyes were dark in warning when he said, “You better.”

  
  


✙

  
  


Minhyun wasn’t avoiding Daniel.  He  _ wasn’t _ .  It just so happened that he was horrifically busy once midterm season hit.  He had exams to sit for and papers to finish. He was helping Professor Park oversee her written and multiple-choice exams, keeping an eye out for cheaters while trying not to laugh at the stressed heartbeats of those who were starting to realize they didn’t study enough.

 

He  _ did _ avoid Jaehwan during that.  He tried not to make eye-contact, staying out of his line of sight as much as possible.  It didn’t mean he couldn’t feel the human’s eyes following him around the room, though, a determined edge to his usually laid back scent, his gaze almost demanding.

 

Minhyun had to admit, using glamour to escape a confrontation and slip past Jaehwan who was waiting outside the testing room for him was not his proudest moment.

 

Neither was ghosting Seongwu, Jonghyun, Minki...anyone, really, who knew his predicament.

 

Minhyun just wasn’t ready.

 

This wasn’t a situation where he could make the involved party forget he ever tried to bite them.  Daniel wasn’t a random person on the street back in the day, wandering alone at night. Minhyun wasn’t the hunter in the shadows he used to be by necessity.  Seongwu was right, he and Daniel were friends. And, their friend groups were thoroughly entangled.

 

Minhyun couldn’t fuck this up.  And that- that  _ terrified _ him.

 

So he kept himself fed, going through his blood packs at a normal rate now that he wasn’t spending so much time around Daniel, and all but ran in the opposite direction whenever he caught a whiff of peaches and honey.

  
  


✙

  
  


“Why do I have to go again?” Minhyun whined, sitting on his bed under Minki’s orders while his friend went through his closet.

 

“Because I said so,” Minki answered, prim and to the point.  “Plus, you ignored all my messages for the past two weeks. Think of it as an apology and go put these clothes on.”

 

He thrust a pair of ripped black jeans and a dark satin button-up into Minhyun’s arms.  Minhyun frowned down at the clothes.

 

“I own a shirt like this?”

 

“Yes,” Minki said, already rummaging around again.  He pointed towards the door. “Now, go change so I can get started on your hair and make-up.”

 

“This is my room,” Minhyun complained.  “And why do I need make-up?”

 

“To look hot,” Minki said simply.  “Didn’t you have a black belt with a silver- ahah! Found it. Here, wear this too.”

 

“Why?”

 

Minki turned around to give him his patented  _ Are you really this stupid? _ stare.   “It’s a party.  _ My _ Fuck Midterms party.”

 

And apparently that was reason enough.

 

“If it’s your party, then why are you here?” Minhyun grumbled.

 

Minki waved him off.  “Dongho and Jonghyun are handling it. Go change.”

 

Minhyun sighed, trudging out of the room, muttering as he went.

 

“And don’t even think about trying to escape!” Minki called, unnecessarily loud.  “I  _ will _ hunt you down and drag you there, one way or another!”

  
  
  


The party was in full-swing when they arrived, two hours later, everyone cheering in greeting for the host, Minki shouting, “Bow down, your king has arrived!” at the top of his lungs.

 

Minhyun spared a moment of sympathy for Minki’s neighbors before following him into the crowd, letting himself be dragged between all the warm, alcohol loose bodies.  The deep thumping of the music’s bass line was accompanied by the undercurrent of every heartbeat in the well-sized apartment — Aron had splurged as a gift to himself when he started his residency, and Dongho and Minki had benefited greatly as his roommates.

 

It made Minhyun’s muscles go lax, his eyes go lidded, all the tension he’d been consciously and unconsciously carrying for months now starting to slowly bleed away.

 

Maybe this wasn’t such a bad idea.

 

“Here.”  They’d made it to the kitchen and Minki shoved a red solo cup of thinned out blood into his hand.  “Drink.”

 

Minhyun scrunched his nose at the smell of alcohol coming from the blood.  “Did you mix this?”

 

“Nope,” Minki said cheerily, a menacing smile on his face as he down a shot of his own, “Aron had a stash. Said we could break it out for you.”

 

That was...suspicious.  Really fucking suspicious.  Aron hoarded his alcohol laced blood more like a dragon and less like a six hundred year old vampire who supposedly didn’t have any attachment to worldly possessions.  

 

“Why?”

 

“To help you unwind,” Minki said, batting his lashes at Minhyun in a way that was decidedly  _ not _ innocent.

 

“Minki, I swear, if you’re up to something-”

 

“Minhyun!”

 

_ Fuck. _

 

Minhyun turned, guilty smile on his face as Seongwu and Jonghyun made their way over.   _ Ah, so it was a trap. _

 

“Stop that,” Seongwu said when they’d gotten closer, lips pushed out in a pout and brows drawn down into a frown.  It was adorable and Minhyun heard the pained noise Jonghyun made high in his throat. Seongwu, cheeks pink and already well on his way to being drunk, stumbled closer.  “Stop making your dumb kicked puppy face. I can’t be mad at you if you look like that.”

 

“I’m sorry?” 

 

Seongwu was in his face now, squinting at him in a way that was probably meant to be threatening.  “You didn’t talk to Daniel, you ass. I’ve been taking care of him while he moped ‘round ‘cause you’re a fuckin’ coward and didn’t talk to him!”

 

“It’s not that simple, I-” Minhyun stopped, fully registering what Seongwu had said, “He was moping?”

 

“‘Course he was, you fucker,” Seongwu slurred, tipping dangerously, something sour mixing in with his usually light scent.

 

Minhyun leaned forward a bit and sniffed, ignoring the weak shove Seongwu gave his shoulder, whining like a baby.   _ What’s that- _

 

Minhyun reeled back.  “Shit, he’s gonna be-”

 

With quick reflexes, Minhyun and Jonghyun managed to drag Seongwu over to the sink and point his head down before he threw up all over them and the floor.

 

“Are you kidding me?” Minki yelped.  “Seongwu, you little bitch, you weren’t supposed to  _ actually _ get drunk!”

 

“‘Supposed to’?” Minhyun asked, eyes narrowed at Minki, while Seongwu groaned, mumbling something that sounded a lot like  _ “But Jonghyun looks too good tonight” _ .

 

“Ignore him,” Jonghyun huffed, cutting in, and Minhyun wasn’t sure who he was referring to, because while the other vampire was looking at Minki, his hand on Seongwu’s neck had gone tense.  To Minhyun, he said, “Can you go get a roll of paper towels? Minki stashed all the extras in his room so that there wouldn’t be any drunken paper towel snowmen this time around.”

 

“Right,” Minhyun said slowly, searching Jonghyun’s face for any tells to match the way Minki’s pulse had kicked.  “I guess it goes without saying not to let him drink anymore?”

 

Jonghyun snorted.  “Nothing but water. Scout’s honor.”

 

Minhyun shifted his hold on Seongwu so that Jonghyun could get a better grip.  It was hard not to smile at the way the human leaned all his weight on Jonghyun, trying to tuck his head into the vampire’s neck.

 

“Try not to bite him either,” Minhyun snorted, taking immense pleasure in the way Jonghyun nearly choked on air, giving Minhyun a mortified glare.  “With how drunk he is, you’d just end up the same way.”

 

“Fuck you,” Jonghyun snapped.

 

Minhyun beamed, giving him a little wave as he made his way back out into the crowded living room, slipping between dancing bodies to get to Minki’s room.  He tongued at his fangs, feeling them slide out at the blatant attention and hungry looks he was getting as he passed by.

 

A shame he wasn’t particularly interested, though.  No one smelled quite right. Even Seongwu hadn’t smelled as appetizing as usual.  The only face that popped up now, the only person whose blood he was craving, was Daniel’s, and he hadn’t even gotten to taste him yet.

 

_ Maybe I can slip out early _ , Minhyun thought, getting to Minki’s door only to find it locked.  He sighed, not wanting to walk back out and ask for the key, instead resorting to pulling out one of his cards to pick it.  

 

_ Drink a little, stay long enough for Minki to get drunk and forget he’s mad at me for ditching him the past two weeks.   _

 

The lock wouldn’t budge so Minhyun gave up and resorted to brute force, putting his shoulder to the door and pushing until he heard the lock break and give.  “Hah.”

 

_ Escape before Jonghyun has a chance to corner me and Seongwu starts to sober up. Yeah. _  Minhyun nodded to himself.   _ That sounds like a plan. _

 

He opened the door and stepped in, closing it behind himself in the same motion, plunging the room into mostly-silence.

 

“Now, where are the-”

 

The smell hit him first, like a punch to the gut.  It was sadness and frustration lingering in the air, but it was confusion, hope, and plain old arousal mixed with a honey-candy sweetness that rose up to drown everything else out.

 

Minhyun choked, eyes wide.  “Daniel.”

 

Daniel, from where he was sitting on the bed, equally wide-eyed and looking so effortlessly beautiful in his tight jeans and leather jacket, stared right back.  “Minhyun.”

 

_ Holy fuck, his hair’s red. _  “What-” Minhyun paused, clearing his throat, trying to ignore the bone deep need that had flared up and settled in his gut, “What’re you doing here?”

 

Daniel shrugged, gaze fixed on Minhyun, pupils blown impossibly wide as he took him in.  

 

“Seongwu dragged me out. Locked me in here ten minutes ago.”  His eyes were trailing down Minhyun’s thighs when he shuddered, caught himself, focus snapping back up with double the intensity.  “Why’re you here? You don’t like this type of party. Too much happening at once, right?”

 

Minhyun let out a shaky breath.  Of course Daniel would remember that about him.

 

“Minki,” he said, as if that answered everything.

 

Daniel laughed though, his head hanging, hair falling into his eyes and shoulders shaking, so maybe it did.  God, Minhyun really liked his laugh.

 

“Why’d Seongwu lock you in here?” Minhyun asked.

 

Daniel stared at him, tilting his head to the side, a small, wry smile playing at the corner of his lips that made Minhyun feel like he’d just asked a really dumb question but Daniel was too nice to say so.  And maybe, all things considered, he had. His brain had basically shut down when he’d first registered Daniel’s scent, lack of exposure leaving him extra affected. 

 

“Said he had something for me. Then he left. And now,” he raised an eyebrow, “here you are.”

 

“Seongwu threw up and Jonghyun sent me in here for paper towels,” Minhyun said, voice coming out too fast and too high.  

 

It sounded like an excuse, but everything that wasn’t ‘me, bite, Daniel, now’ had flown from his mind because _fuck_ , _he smelled_ _so good_.

 

“There are no paper towels in here, hyung,” there was a slow, teasing lilt to his voice, a spark of confidence that hadn’t been there when Minhyun had first walked in, “and I’ve never seen Seongwu throw up from drinking even once.”

 

Minhyun curled his fingers behind his back, feeling his nails dig into the wood.  “He was pretty drunk.”

 

“Hmm,” Daniel hummed.  He didn’t try to move, but Minhyun saw the quick twitch of his muscles.  He didn’t try, but he definitely wanted to. “Well, either way, here we are.”

 

_ Alone. _

 

Minhyun swallowed.  “Yup.” His voice was still pitched too high, too breathy.  “Here we are.”

 

They fell into a charged silence, the air thick with tension.  Minhyun could still hear the music blasting outside, feel it thrumming through the door and into his bones, but it paled in comparison to Daniel’s heartbeat which was skipping in his chest, quick and sharp.  Minhyun wanted nothing more than to taste it.

 

“You know,” Daniel said into the silence, eyes still trained on Minhyun’s, only darting down to his mouth when Minhyun let out a soft, unsteady breath, “Seongwu said I should’ve just made things clear from the start. That you wouldn’t get it otherwise. But I said that I didn’t want to do that. Didn’t want to push. I don’t like it when people are aggressive with me, so I didn’t want to be like that with you.”

 

Minhyun blinked, barely keeping up with what Daniel was saying, too distracted by the subtle shifts in his scent.  He could recognize what each one meant, now. His fangs slid down a bit further, close to pressing against the inside of his lips.

 

“I thought things were going fine, too,” Daniel continued when Minhyun didn’t say anything, when he realized he couldn’t say anything, “I thought it was working, that you’d get it and finally  _ do something _ .”  He let out a disbelieving laugh.  “Things were going good and then that day- you  _ ran _ .”

 

“I’m sorry,” Minhyun blurted, and once those first words were out they wouldn’t stop, his guilt bubbling up and spilling over.  “I didn’t mean to- I just- I shouldn’t have done that- I was worried that you’d,” he made a noise of frustration, running a hand through his hair and looking away, “I was worried that I’d hurt you. Scared you. I couldn’t- I had to-”

 

“Seongwu said you could be kinda dumb sometimes,” Daniel said, sounding fond.

 

Minhyun probably shouldn’t have been so endeared by that, and he’d definitely get Seongwu back later — maybe lock him in a room with Jonghyun and- oh.  Oh.

 

Minhyun’s head snapped back up to look at Daniel.  The human was still staring back, an amused smile on his face.

 

“This is a set up.”

 

“To be fair, I didn’t know what was going on either until you walked in the door.”

 

“I’m going to kill them,” Minhyun seethed.  “Fuck.”

 

Daniel frowned, doubt, bitter and sharp, spiking his scent.  “Are you mad?”

 

“No, well, yeah, but” Minhyun groaned pressing the heels of his hands against his eyes.  His fangs were almost at their full length now, clicking against his bottom teeth every time he spoke.  Fuck, he just wanted to close the distance between them and take whatever Daniel was willing to give. “Not at you.”

 

Daniel let out a slow exhale from between very inviting lips.  His eyes took on a determined glint, his shoulders, which had been slouching forward, rolled back as he straightened up.  In one fluid motion that was all swimmer’s ease and dancer’s grace, Daniel was on his feet and coming closer.

 

“You were avoiding me.”

 

It wasn’t an accusation, simply a statement.  Daniel didn’t stop until he was standing in front of Minhyun, no more than a few inches apart.  Close enough for the rapid beat of his heart to be thunderous, the wet rushing of blood in his veins enough to have Minhyun listing closer without thinking, his mouth watering and his eyes going heavy lidded.

 

“I attacked you.”

 

Daniel smiled and, fuck, Minhyun could feel his breath on his skin when he talked.  “You really didn’t.”

 

Minhyun shivered.  “I  _ did _ . I tried to- to  _ feed from you _ . I lost control.”

 

“Minhyun,” Daniel circled long warm fingers around Minhyun’s wrist.  Minhyun’s breath hitched in his chest. All he could smell, with Daniel this close, was him.  His need, his lust, and something richer, sweeter under it all. “If anything, I baited you. Which, I guess is forcing you,” Daniel huffed, head dipping, eyes shifting away as pink dusted his ears, “I just wanted you to make a move. You don’t exactly seem to be the type who appreciates being chased.”

 

“I don’t,” Minhyun agreed, voice deeper now with his own arousal, “I really thought I’d crossed a line. I thought I’d scared you off.”

 

Daniel snorted, closing the space between them and raising his other hand to cup Minhyun’s cheek, making Minhyun gasp at the sensation of warm skin on cool.  “Scared? No. Confused and painfully hard? Yes.”

 

“How the fuck did I miss that?” Minhyun wondered out loud in disbelief, groaning softly when the hand at his neck dragged down his chest, fingers pressing with intent between the ridges of his muscles until they reached his belt buckle.

 

Daniel shrugged.  “You were really hungry and then you were freaking out. It happens.”

 

He tilted his head and slowly leaned in to nuzzle against Minhyun’s neck, trailing his lips against the exposed skin there.  Minhyun almost laughed at the bizarre reversal of positions. He couldn’t even remember the last time he’d let someone near his bared throat.  Daniel nipped lightly at the junction between neck and shoulder and Minhyun did laugh. A breathless, awed little sound that had Daniel pressing flush against him, encouraged.

 

“You were wearing this shirt that night,” Daniel sighed, licking a stripe along Minhyun’s exposed collar bone.  “Fuck, you looked so good.”

 

“What night?” Minhyun asked, mumbled really, the words taking more effort to form than he’d like to admit, the part of him that wanted to flip their positions and just drink getting harder to tamp down.

 

He felt like he was on top of the world right now, though, and he wasn’t about to cut the moment short just because Daniel made him want more than he ever thought he could.

 

“The first night I saw you drink from someone.”

 

Minhyun tensed, eyes snapping open.  “What?”

 

“The night of Dongho’s birthday back in my sophomore year,” Daniel said, moving back up to Minhyun’s neck.

 

Minhyun had never been more grateful that he didn’t lose his sensitivity to touch, back arching as Daniel found the spot just under his ear that had him sighing out his name like a plea.

 

It meant it took a second for him to try and pull up the night Daniel was talking about, but when he did he pushed him back by the shoulder, staring at the human as realization and understanding slowly worked through the haze Daniel put him in.

 

“That was two years ago.”

 

Daniel frowned at him, his hair still neatly parted to the side, the only signs that he was as riled up as Minhyun being the racing of his heart echoing in his chest — his blood rushing in his veins, so close to the surface of his skin Minhyun could taste it — and the overpowering satisfaction of his scent.

 

“So?”

 

Two years.   _ Two years _ .  Before Daniel and Jaehwan had really started hanging out with Minhyun’s friend group.  No. That wasn’t quite right. That was  _ just _ around the time he started showing up at their get-togethers more, tailing Seongwu like a puppy.  Smelling so sweet and eager.

 

Minhyun wanted to laugh.   _ “He likes you,” _ Seongwu had said.  That fucker. 

 

“Unbelievable,” he said instead, slipping his wrist free from Daniel’s hold and fisting his jacket.  “You’re as bad as Seongwu.”

 

And then he kissed him.  Hard.

 

Daniel stumbled back with the force of it, a startled grunt forcing its way out of his chest.  He clung on tight to Minhyun, hands at his waist as Minhyun pushed him back, back, back, until they were both tumbling onto Minki’s bed.

 

“All this time,” Minhyun breathed, breaking from the kiss, all but growling when he saw how pretty Daniel looked on his back, breathing heavily through parted lips, “I didn’t have to hold back at all, did I?”

 

Daniel pawed at Minhyun’s shirt, tugging harshly at the silky material, tongue coming out to swipe over his lips.  He whined when Minhyun didn’t budge. “ _ Hyung _ .”

 

Minhyun snorted, dipping back down and slotting their lips together, wasting no time in licking into Daniel’s mouth.  He swallowed down Daniel’s sighs, sliding a knee up the bed and between the younger man’s legs to coax a moan out from him before swallowing that down too.

 

He groaned in approval when Daniel hooked a long, strong leg around his waist, allowing himself to be dragged down, hips shifting to fit against Daniel’s in a way that had both of them moaning into the kiss.  Daniel’s scent spiked, Minhyun practically purring at the rush of sweetness that hit the back of his tongue and filled his lungs, his fangs accidentally scraping Daniel’s bottom lip as they finally extended to their full length.

 

“Sorry,” Minhyun said on reflex when they parted again so Daniel could catch his breath.

 

Daniel stared up at him with his eyes blown and glazed, lips kissed pink and slick with spit.  “You really need to stop saying that,” he croaked before surging up like a wave.

 

This time it was Daniel licking into his mouth, tongue curling around Minhyun’s fangs.  It had Minhyun seeing stars.

 

He whimpered high in his throat, the blood in his body rushing south so fast it almost hurt.  

 

_ He’s gonna be the death of me _ , Minhyun thought faintly, relishing in the way Daniel’s hands yanked his shirt from where it’d been partially tucked into his pants, warm palms quickly finding their place on Minhyun’s back.

 

Minhyun sighed into the kiss, letting Daniel’s warmth seep in where they touched, cataloguing how each touch, each shift of his hips, each curl of his tongue made the human under him react.  He let his hunger guide him, something primal in him crowing in victory as he placed a trail of wet, open-mouthed kisses down Daniel’s jaw, his breath hitching when Minhyun reached the bit of skin peeking out from the fitted turtleneck he was wearing.

 

“Yes,” he moaned, breaths puffing out hot and damp against Minhyun’s ear.

 

“Why the fuck are you wearing a turtleneck?” Minhyun hissed against his skin, pressing the flats of his fangs against Daniel’s throat while his hands reached down to pull on the hem of his long-sleeve.  He rucked up the offending piece of clothing as high as it would go without being taken off, revealing beautiful planes of warm, unmarred skin and well toned muscle. “God, you’re beautiful.”

 

Daniel squirmed, muscles tensing, goosebumps rising wherever Minhyun’s hands touched.  “Hyung,” he whined again, arching his back, bare chest brushing against Minhyun’s clothed one.  “Just,” he pulled his turtleneck off the rest of the way, haphazardly tossing it to the side and baring his neck, “ _ Please? _ ”

 

“We really should talk about this first,” Minhyun managed, throat clicking from how dry it had gotten.

 

_ Don’t get swept up.  Don’t get swept up. Don’t get swept u- _

 

“Minhyun,” Daniel groaned, his voice resonating deep in his chest, breathier with arousal, “Just fucking bite me already.”

 

Minhyun almost choked, fingers curling tight in the sheets where he was propping himself up.  Daniel’s heartbeat was thrumming in his ears, so close. He’d done this to him. He was like this because of Minhyun.  All he had to do was lean down and-

 

Minhyun pressed his face into Daniel’s neck, nosing right over his pulse point with a shaky sigh before shifting to lick over it.   _ Hah, screw it _ .  “We’re going to talk about this later.”

 

“Yeah,” Daniel threaded a hand in Minhyun's hair, excitement spiking.  “Later.”

 

And then he was biting him, sinking his teeth into Daniel’s neck as far as they would go.

 

They both tensed, Daniel letting out a noise that had Minhyun curling impossibly closer.  Daniel’s blood flowed over Minhyun’s tongue and down his throat and Minhyun moaned long and loud.

 

Daniel tasted even better than he’d imagined.  Like honey and spiced tea, mixed with something sugar sweet that was so intrinsically  _ him _ it had Minhyun shuddering.  He let his weight pin Daniel down into the bed, taking another greedy gulp, allowing himself to do what he’d wanted to for months now.

 

Daniel curled around him in kind, breaths coming out in heavy pants.  “ _ Finally- _ ”

 

“Hwang Minhyun I can’t believe you broke my fucking do-  _ the fuck do you think you’re doing on my bed? _ ”

 

Minhyun practically sprang up, eyes wide and startled.  Daniel’s expression mirrored his. Just as caught off guard, just as frustrated.

 

“Fucking get it Daniel!” Seongwu howled from somewhere down the hall, the sound of Jonghyun sighing and trying to drag him off just barely audible.

 

“ _ Not on my bed you don't! _ ”

 

“We need new friends,” Minhyun said seriously.

 

Daniel snorted out a laugh but didn’t disagree, tilting his head back to find where his shirt had been thrown to.  

 

Minhyun watched, eyes tracing the flex and stretch of muscle lining Daniel’s body.  His hunger settling down into a low, blessedly normal simmer, he allowed himself to just...look.

 

Daniel’s cheeks were flushed a pretty pink and his lips were kissed red.  His hair was starting to stick along his forehead, turning dark from the sweat collecting along his hairline.  He looked a bit dazed still, but mostly tired, now that their moment was shattered.  _ Beautiful. _

 

Minhyun ducked down again to lick up the blood still trickling out of the bite wounds on Daniel’s neck.  He gently ran his tongue over the two holes, filing away the startled but interested noise Daniel made in his throat for later exploration.

 

When the bite was nothing more than healing skin, he sat back on his heels, Daniel following him up.

 

“My place or yours?” he asked, sliding his turtleneck back on, running a hand through his now tousled hair.

 

Minhyun licked his lips, rubbing a hand over his mouth to get rid of any extra blood.  He thought about Jonghyun leading Seongwu away, the human’s scent so pleased and eager there’s no way the other vampire couldn’t have noticed.

 

“Yours.”

 

Daniel smiled, his eyes disappearing with the force of it, positively preening at the lack of resistance on Minhyun’s part.  As if Minhyun would try to at this point.

 

“Can we get food on the way?”

 

Minhyun crawled backwards off the bed, holding out a hand for Daniel, pulling him up and to his feet with an ease that had the human gasping softly.  Minhyun just barely managed to keep a smirk off his lips. “Ramen?”

 

Daniel hummed, giving Minhyun a chaste kiss.  Just a gentle press of warm lips against his own.  When he stepped back he was practically glowing, his happiness sharp and tangy in the air.

 

“It’s a date.”

  
  


✙

  
  


“Still mad at Seongwu and Minki for last night?” Daniel mumbled against Minhyun’s skin early the next moring, his voice still rough with sleep.

 

Minhyun hummed, carding fingers through Daniel’s hair, basking in his warmth, how his heart felt beating against Minhyun’s chest.  He was so unbelievably happy.

 

“Depends.”

 

Daniel tucked himself up under Minhyun’s chin, nuzzling against his throat.  “On what?”

 

“How obnoxious they are about it later,” Minhyun deadpanned.  Somewhere on the floor, mixed in with his clothing, his phone buzzed.  Minhyun ran a hand down Daniel’s back, pressing into the knots of muscles he found there, gently working them out.  “Go back to sleep. We can worry about those idiots later.”

 

“M’kay.”

 

He snuggled closer, tangling their legs under the sheets.  Minhyun’s phone buzzed again. And again. And again.

 

“Your phone,” Daniel said, voice muffled and already half asleep.

 

“Ignore it.”  Minhyun pressed his nose into Daniel’s hair, letting his scent soothe him, over the moon that it didn’t trigger a rabid hunger anymore.  Just a warm, content, protectiveness. “If no one’s breaking down the door, then it’s not important.”

  
  


✙

  
  


**Aron the Wise:** Yo, Jonghyun mentioned you had an issue, something about Daniel’s scent sending you into a frenzy everytime you’re around him?

 

**Aron the Wise:** I’ve seen something like that before

 

**Aron the Wise:** Turned out it was because the vampire and human were into each other and it built some sort of weird bond. The hunger only stopped once they got together and the vampire fed from them.

 

**Aron the Wise:** Didn't know if they'd told you and just thought you'd like to know!

 

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> If you enjoyed, kudos and comments are always welcomed with open arms!


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